NPFMC will meet in person and online October 2-11, 2023 at the Hilton Hotel in Anchorage, Alaska.
The comment period will open September 8, 2023 and the deadline for written comments is Friday, September 29 at 12pm AKT. Submitted comments will be reviewed then visible online after the deadline closes, as per the Council’s comment policy.
The SSC will meet October 2-4, 2023. The AP will meet October 3-7, 2023, and the Council will meet October 5-11, 2023. (Dates are subject to change.)
The schedule, eAgenda, pre-meeting review documents schedule and timing is available. A short summary of agenda items is forthcoming.
To sign up for text alerts about all three meetings, text “NPFMC” to 1-833-237-1598. Please contact npfmc.admin@noaa.gov if you need help or have questions.
The Hilton room block is now open. Please use this link to book your stay by September 15, 2023.
The Alaska Airlines discount code is ECMG013.
What to expect if you are attending remotely
To allow attendees to attend either in person or remotely, we will be broadcasting all three meetings, and will allow the public to testify either in person or virtually. We will use the eAgenda for public testimony signups, with an additional checkbox to indicate whether each person is intending to testify in person or remotely. If you would like to present a slideshow during your testimony, please include it as an attachment when you sign up. We will bring it up on screen for you to share from your attachment.
AP and Council members are expected to participate in person, and staff are encouraged to present in person but in some cases may not be able to.
For those accessing the meeting remotely, it will be broadcast on zoom and will continue to be streamed live and stored on YouTube. You will still also be able to follow along with any documents from the eAgenda.
Along with the ability to provide public comment remotely, here are some suggestions to make your comments as effective as possible.
- We have to be able to hear you. Please find somewhere quiet if you are in a noisy area. Pull over if you are driving. Make sure your dog has a good chew toy. In short, try and minimize distractions. Planes taking off overhead get amplified over large speakers in the meeting ballroom.
- If you are using your computer’s audio, please make sure to unmute yourself, make sure the correct microphone is selected, and that the volume on it is turned up. Ensure you have a stable internet connection.
- In the event you cannot testify via zoom, please call in with your telephone to the number listed on the eAgenda. Make sure you’re calling from the same number you signed up with – that way we know who to unmute when it is your turn. Make sure you have good cell service. If you are connected by zoom AND by phone, please mute your computer or go in another room or the feedback will prevent you from testifying.
- Listen for your name to be called. If you have concerns you won’t be available, please email npfmc.admin@noaa.gov
We will make every effort to allow you to make your comments during the meeting, but if we cannot hear you, or if your internet connection is unstable and cuts out on your comments, we cannot adjust your settings remotely. If you would like to do a sound check ahead of time, please email npfmc.admin@noaa.gov and we can advise you on the best way to make your voice heard!
What to expect if you are attending in person
The Council meetings have gone mostly paperless, and will continue to use our eAgenda for sharing documents. Because of this, you may want to bring your own phone, tablet, or laptop, although we will have some ipad reference stands available. The schedule purposely does not overlap the SSC and Council. With respect to COVID precautions, we strongly encourage all meeting attendees to wear masks, and to follow other CDC guidelines to prevent getting sick. We have obtained a larger meeting space to allow some additional distancing around the table and in the audience, and we ask that you do not attend the meeting if you feel symptomatic, and if you test positive for COVID, please let us know so we can post an alert in the meeting room.
We are using hybrid (in person and remote) procedures, and we ask that you be patient and flexible with us as we continue to refine our procedures. We are testing both what works and what is manageable, and will use that experience to gauge what is sustainable for the long-term, and whether we can offer all of these same options, for example, at our coastal Alaska meetings in future. We welcome your feedback at any time (npfmc.admin@noaa.gov).